| Nature of shells, in inches | 13 | 10 | 8 | 5½ | 4⅖ |
| Their weight (loaded) in pounds | 200 | 92 | 46 | 16 | 8 |
| Charge of powder (land service) do. | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | ½ |
| The velocities | 436 | 500 | 629 | 693 | 693 |
From Experiments on the velocities of shot, the following results have been obtained:—
1. The time of a ball’s flight is nearly as the range, the gun, and elevation being the same.
2. The velocities decrease as the distances increase (arising from the resistance of the air, which opposes the progress of the shot,) in a proportion somewhat higher than the squares of the velocities throughout, and subject only to a small variation.
3. Very little advantage is gained, in point of range, by increasing the charge more than is necessary to attain the object, the velocities given by large charges being very soon reduced to those by moderate charges; those, for instance, given by half the shot’s weight are reduced to an equality with those by one-third, after passing through a space of only 200 feet. (Vide [8.])
4. Very little benefit is derived from increasing the length of guns, the velocity given by long guns of 22 calibres being reduced to an equality with that of short guns of 15½ calibres with similar charges, after passing through the following spaces—viz.:—
| With | ½ | the shot’s | weight, | about | 285 |
| ” | ⅓ | do. | do. | 200 | |
| ” | ¼ | do. | do. | 150 | |
| ” | ⅙ | do. | do. | 115 |
5. The resistance of the air against balls of different diameters with equal velocities, is very nearly in the proportion of the squares of their diameters, or as their surfaces.
6. A very great increase of velocity may be acquired by a decrease of windage, from ⅓ to ¼ being lost by the windage of ½0 the diameter of the bore.